After Dark: Victorian England's Most Gruesome Murder – Detailed Summary

Episode Release Date: June 2, 2025
Hosts: Anthony Delaney and Maddy Pelling

Introduction

In this chilling episode of After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal, historians Anthony Delaney and Maddy Pelling delve into one of Victorian England's most gruesome murders. The story intertwines dark history with modern-day discoveries, unraveling the sinister tale of Kate Webster and the mysterious dismemberment of her mistress, Julia Martha Thomas.

Discovery in the Garden (00:02:33 - 00:05:04)

The episode opens with an evocative reenactment of a 2010 garden discovery in Richmond, a wealthy London suburb. An elderly homeowner, humorously impersonating Sir David Attenborough, engages workmen excavating his garden. Their efforts unearthed a disturbing find: an empty human eye socket—a skull.

Anthony Delaney (00:05:07):
“At first I thought Maddy was reading the wrong script there. I was like, why are we in a garden? Why is it the 21st century?”

This startling discovery set the stage for uncovering a dark chapter from the Victorian era, bringing historical crime into the present day.

Historical Context: Victorian England (00:05:17 - 00:14:30)

Maddy provides a comprehensive backdrop of 1879 England, highlighting societal dynamics and technological advancements.

Maddy Pelling (00:07:18):
“Queen Victoria is on the throne, Benjamin Disraeli as the Prime Minister in Great Britain. There is a war going on between the British and the Zulus in Africa.”

She touches upon the British Empire's global influence, the ongoing Anglo-Zulu war, and significant milestones like Newcastle lighting Mosley Street with electricity—a relatively late development for 1879.

Maddy Pelling (00:08:35):
“In Ireland, there is a famine and there's about to be the land war that year.”

This period was marked by social upheaval, economic disparity, and the burgeoning media's fascination with sensational crimes, setting the perfect stage for notorious figures like Jack the Ripper to emerge a decade later.

Introducing Kate Webster (00:10:56 - 00:15:59)

The focus shifts to Kate Webster, the central figure of the murder case. Maddy introduces Kate as a 30-year-old Irish immigrant from County Wexford, working as a general servant for Julia Martha Thomas in Richmond.

Maddy Pelling (00:13:03):
“She claims that she was married to a sea captain called John Webster and that she had four children. However, she then claimed that the husband and all four children had died.”

Kate's precarious life, marked by multiple arrests for larceny and unstable personal relationships, paints a picture of a woman possibly driven to desperate measures. Her role as a general servant, encompassing a myriad of household duties, strained under the pressures of 19th-century domestic hierarchies.

The Gruesome Murder (00:17:03 - 00:32:11)

On a fateful day in January 1879, tensions between Kate and her employer escalate. An argument erupts, leading Kate to violently push Julia Martha Thomas down the stairs, resulting in severe injuries.

Anthony Delaney (00:05:19):
“It's not even Alison Hammond, it's David Attenborough. It's the Nationalist of all nationalist treasures.”

In a state of panic and fear of discovery, Kate resorts to dismembering her mistress using a copper pot for boiling—a common laundry appliance of the time—and various kitchen implements. Her gruesome efforts to dispose of the body are chaotic and inefficient, indicating a disturbed mental state.

Maddy Pelling (00:25:07):
“I chopped off the head from the body, assisted with the use of a razor. I also used the meat saw and the carving knife to cut up the body.”

The narrative describes Kate's frenzied attempts to obliterate evidence, resulting in malformed body parts scattered and eventually buried near David Attenborough's garden—tying back to the modern discovery that sparked the investigation.

Attempted Concealment and Deception (00:32:31 - 00:36:33)

Kate's desperation drives her to impersonate her deceased mistress, adopting Julia Thomas's attire and identity to deflect suspicion. She approaches the Porter family in Hammersmith, posing as Mrs. Thomas to solicit assistance in selling household belongings.

Despite initial hospitality, subtle oddities in her behavior and the mysterious box containing body parts begin to raise eyebrows. Kate's interactions highlight her cunning yet flawed attempt to evade detection, culminating in the inadvertent suspension of the dismembered head in a pub's soil—a detail that would later resurrect the macabre tale.

Media Portrayal and Lingering Myths (00:37:25 - 00:42:44)

The episode critically examines how Kate Webster's crimes were sensationalized by the Victorian press, perpetuating myths such as her selling human fat as lard to unsuspecting children—a claim not substantiated by primary sources but widely reported in modern media.

Maddy Pelling (00:41:44):
“The Daily Mail headline... reads, 'cut up and boiled to feed street children.'"

This portrayal intertwines with prevalent anti-Irish sentiments of the era, using derogatory terms like "savage" both to discredit Kate and to underscore her brutal actions. The hosts discuss the lasting impact of such narratives on public perception, emphasizing the challenges in distinguishing fact from embellished fiction.

Social Implications and Gender Dynamics (00:42:47 - 00:45:18)

Anthony and Maddy delve into the societal undercurrents that may have influenced the crime, including the pressures faced by immigrant women, the rigid Victorian gender roles, and the fraught relationships between servants and employers. Kate's actions defy contemporary expectations of femininity, making her case particularly sensational and disturbing to Victorian audiences.

Anthony Delaney (00:44:06):
“...the door is closed, there's two women living together, not particularly unusual, and the tensions between them... the house transforms itself from this workaday, lower middle-class London house into a gruesome murder scene.”

This transformation from mundane domestic life to horror underscores the volatility of personal relationships constrained by societal norms and economic hardships.

Conclusion: Historical Relevance and Modern Echoes (00:45:18 - 00:47:00)

Wrapping up, the hosts reflect on the profound layers of history uncovered through Kate Webster's case. They emphasize how uncovering such crimes connects us to the hidden, often brutal realities beneath the surface of everyday life, both in the past and present.

Maddy Pelling (00:45:18):
“It's a reminder... how visceral that is beneath our feet and that beneath the ground is evidence of all manner of human life, good and bad, waiting to be discovered.”

Anthony shares his fascination with how private domestic spaces can harbor unimaginable secrets, drawing parallels with other infamous Victorian crimes like those of Rillington Place and Dr. Crippen. The episode concludes by inviting listeners to explore related cases in future episodes, highlighting the enduring allure of Victorian-era mysteries.

Additional Notes

• Artistic Representation: Maddy mentions a waxwork representation of Kate Webster, noting its unsettling and masculine portrayal, which reflects Victorian stereotypes of Irish immigrants as brutish and uncivilized.

• Media Influence: The discussion underscores the role of media in shaping and perpetuating myths, often blurring the lines between fact and sensationalism, which continues to influence modern perceptions of historical events.

• Gender and Crime: The hosts explore the societal shock and fascination with female perpetrators, contrasting it with the more normalized perception of male violence, and how this dynamic played out in Victorian society.

This episode of After Dark offers a harrowing glimpse into Victorian England's underbelly, exploring themes of immigration, gender, societal expectations, and the dark allure of sensational crimes. Through meticulous storytelling and critical analysis, Anthony and Maddy illuminate the complexities of a society where personal vendettas and systemic pressures converge in acts of unimaginable violence.